— By Jonathan Treble, Founder and CEO of WithMe Inc.
In today’s multifamily landscape, amenities play a pivotal role that goes beyond attracting and retaining prospective residents. The right amenity package can enhance residents’ daily experience, nurture a thriving sense of community and ultimately increase the asset’s overall value.
By thoughtfully outfitting an asset with the right amenities, property owners and operators can cater to today’s renters’ live-work-play and remote-work lifestyles.
Modern Renters Desire “Third Spaces”
Post-pandemic, the traditional boundaries between home, office and social spaces have blurred. Remote and hybrid work have become the norm, with 54 percent of U.S. employees working hybrid schedules and 27 percent working remotely, according to a report from Gallup.
This lifestyle shift has made the concept of a dedicated “third space” — which exists outside private living and working environments — more essential than ever before. These spaces accommodate social events and organic community mingling, as well as focused individual productivity. Residents can easily transition between coworking sessions, private tasks, restorative breaks and daily routines such as cooking.
Savvy developers are meeting this need by intentionally designing common areas featuring vibrant amenities to serve as these third-space oases within their communities.
On WithMe Inc.’s “Trends in Multifamily Coworking Spaces” webinar, which was held in February 2023, a panel of multifamily professionals discussed how to retrofit existing spaces to meet the needs of today’s remote workers.
“Multifamily owners and operators can be more impactful with 500 to 1,000 square feet if they use that space effectively,” said Tyler Yates, the former managing director of property management and operations at CEDARst Cos. “It doesn’t need to be a checkbox on the website. It needs to be meaningful, and it needs to be a space that residents want to employ. It’s all about doing it right to create the right experience for your residents.”
Tech-Enabled Convenience Meets Social Anchors
Common areas alone aren’t enough to foster a sense of community. These spaces must feature and seamlessly integrate amenities that align with residents’ actual daily habits and preferences. Today’s residents gravitate toward self-serve, tech-enabled amenities that provide convenience while doubling as social anchor points.
For example, community coffee amenities are an effective way for residents to engage with one another and also serve as a hub for property managers to check in with their residents. Residents who miss the social aspects of the workday, such as hitting the corner café or the office water cooler, can grab a craft beverage while catching up with their neighbors.
A recent Statista survey found that 73 percent of Americans consume coffee every day. Communities that offer WithMe’s coffee solution, SipWithMe, have experienced an average utilization rate of 51.7 percent, an indication that coffee is a crucial part of many residents’ daily routines.
Providing productivity-enhancing amenities such as printer stations and a space to rent audio-visual equipment (such as projectors, video cameras, speakers, microphones, and computer monitors) also enables residents to work efficiently outside their units. In fact, a recent survey by WithMe showed that 82 percent of residents in communities with the PrintWithMe wireless printer station deem it an “essential” amenity.
Social Programming Nurtures Resident Engagement
Integrated live-work-play amenities fulfill residents’ need for consistent and authentic social engagement. Today’s renters place a premium on having amenity-anchored common areas to organically connect with their neighbors and create a sense of community — something that many people lacked during the isolated pandemic experience.
In the post-COVID era, these socially focused amenities are even more impactful for combating isolation and nurturing overall mental and physical health. Properties that foster a genuine sense of community where neighbors know one another will be increasingly sought after.
Property managers can strengthen this community feel by programming a mix of enrichment events and casual meetups within adaptable common spaces. During WithMe’s recent “Amenities Your Residents Will LOVE” webinar, panelists noted that on-site teams can even use amenity spaces as a backdrop for events outside their intended purpose, such as a cocktail hour in the business center.
Whether it’s cooking classes in shared kitchens or movie nights in the courtyard, thoughtfully curated event programming can help residents feel truly at home among friends and neighbors.
Innovative Amenities Fortify Long-Term Asset Value
Hybrid and remote-work arrangements show no signs of abating, with a rapidly growing cohort of untethered workers prizing flexibility. Looking forward, communities featuring purposefully designed amenities that serve as tech-forward, active social spaces will hold a distinct competitive edge in attracting this expanding renter segment.
By investing in innovative amenities and community spaces today, owners and operators fortify their properties’ long-term value and relevance. Creating amenity-rich environments that cater to modern residents’ live-work-play lifestyles and foster a sense of community will be crucial to maintaining high occupancy and satisfaction metrics, as well as preserving asset values for the future.
Jonathan Treble is the founder and CEO of WithMe Inc., a provider of technology-enabled amenities. Today, WithMe’s amenities can be found in approximately 5,000 locations across the United States.